Car-coupling.



No. 664,608. Patented Dec. 25, I900. S. P. BUSH.

CAR COUPLING.

(Application filed June 17, 1899.) (No Modem 3 Sheets-$heet l.

Samue\ P. Bush MAO/W 33 m r No. 664,608. Patented Dec. 25, I900. S. P. BUSH.

CAR COUPLING.

(Nu Mode'.) I Application filed Jun-e 17, 1899. 3 Sheetsa-sheet 2.

5 I'I/UQM/I'OZ SOMMLLGL ,P Bush wv w w 2 1 s H 9 2 x m mm. 1 h Z, n 1m HLH IH IH|||| I ME w rut mums PEYERS ca, PHDYQUTHQ. wnsmmmo t. n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT @FFICE.

SAMUEL P. BUSH, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 664.608. dated December 25, 1900-.-

Applioation filed June 1'7, 1 899.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL P. BUsH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Car-Couplers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the improvement of car-couplings, and has particular relation to that class of couplers in which cars are adapted to be coupled through the interlocking or engagement of coacting knuckles hinged to the draw-heads.

The objects of my invention are to provide a car-coupling of this class of superior construction and arrangement of parts, to provide in conjunction therewith an improved knuckle and lock and means for controlling the same, toprovidea positive knuckle-opening device of such construction as to obviate the necessity of the operator going between the cars, to provide improved means for setting the lock in an unlocked position without opening the knuckle, and to produce other improvements, which will be more fully pointed out hereinafter. These objects I accomplish in the manner illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a horizontal section through the body or casing of a draw-head, showing my improvements therein in plan and showing the knuckle in a locked position. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of the draw-head, the line on which the same is taken being indicated at a: a; in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a similar View to that shown in Fig. l with the knuckle displayed in a partially open or unlocked position. Fig. 4 is a section on line yy of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detail view in perspective of one of my improved knuckles. Fig. 6 is a similar view of the latter. Fig. 7 is a similar View of the operating-pin, and Fig. 8 is a view in perspective of the forward portion of a draw-head having my improvement and for the sake of clearness showing the knuckle broken away.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views,

I carrying out my invention Iemploy a desirable form of hollow or recessed draw-head,- which is indicated at 1,said head being'formed on each side of its open mouth with jaws 2,

Serial No. 720,888. \No model.)

in one of whichis pivoted through the medium ofa pin 2 the coupling-knuckle 3. This knuckle is of an angular form, and the rearwardly-extending arm 4 thereof, which enters the mouth of the draw-head, is provided in its inner end portion with a laterally-projecting hook-tongue 5, thelatter being formed with the upper portion of said arm 4. The lower side of the arm 4 is also provided with a laterally-projecting flange 6, which is provided on its upper side with a rib or raised portion 7. The side or face of the knucklearm 4 between the flange 6 and tongue 5 is provided,- as indicated more clearly in Fig. 5, with a recess or depression 7. The inner end of the knuckle-arm 4 is also provided with a projection on the opposite side thereof from the hook-tongue 5, whichresults in the formation of a vertical shoulder 8. 9 represents a lock-body which is supported and operated within the draw-head in the manner hereinafter set forth. In constructing this lock-body I form what I will term the outer end thereof of greater height than the inner or pivot portion thereof, this increased height being attained through the elevated portion indicated at 10, said elevated portion being of greater width than the extension 11, through which the additional width is provided, has formed on its inner face a vertical channelor way 12, through which a substantially hook shape is imparted to said lateral extension 11. portion of the body is rounded and enlarged and provided with a central vertical opening 13, the latter being provided with a vertical offset or keyway 14. From the lower portion of the inner pivot end of the lock 9 extends laterally and forwardly a curved finger 15.

The lock formed as above described is loosely mounted upon a vertical lock-operating pin, which is indicated at 16 and which passes loosely through an opening 17 in the upper side of the draw-head and a vertically opposite opening 18 in the lower side or door of said draw-head. The upper end of this pin is preferably provided with an eye extenmay be jointedly connected, through the medium of chain-links or otherwise, one end of a suitable operating-lever. As indicated in central portion of said body, and the lateral The inner end sion, such as is indicated at 19, and with which the drawings, the upper end portion of the pin 16 may be of less circumference than the remaining portion thereof, although this is not essential to the operation. Leading downward through the annular shoulder 20, which is formed by the junction of the portions of said pin having difierent circumferences, are thread-recesses, which, as shown more clearly in Figs. 7 and 2 at 21, are in the form of spiral segments. At a point on the larger portion of the pin 16, below the center of the height thereof, I form a vertical key or projecting lug 22, the upper end portion of which is preferably beveled, as shown, and which is adapted when the pin 16 is in its dropped or lowest position to extend through a correspondingly-shaped keyway 23, formed in the wall of the pin-opening 18. When the pin 16 is in its dropped or lowest position and the lock,

which is mounted thereon, is seated on the floor of the draw-head, the upper beveled end of the lug 22 is in position for contact with the underside of the lower end of the look at a point immediately adjacent to the channel or keyway 14 of the latter.

In the formation of the bottom or floor portion of the-draw-head that portion which is adjacent to the mouth of said head is raised, as indicated at 24, and the inner vertical wall of this raised portion formsa shoulder orstop which assists in prohibiting an outward swinging movement of the look when the latter is seated on the draw-head floor or adjacent thereto. It is obvious, however, that instead of employing the vertical wall 24 the drawbar4 might be thickened or otherwise enlarged downwardly, said thickened portion being provided with a socket to receive said lock. As indicated at 25, the otherwise vertical inner wall-surface of the upper pin-opening 17 is provided with projecting thread-segments, which are adapted when the pin 16 is sufficiently raised to engage the thread-recesses 21 of said pin. The underside of the draw-head top in front of the pin-opening 17 is provided with a transverse depending rib 26, a portion of which is turned outward to form a curved ledge 27. At the end of this ledge 27 and at a point opposite the pin 16 I form with the rib 26 a down wardly-extending lug 28, the latter having its right-hand side beveled to present an inclined face 29. When in its locked or inturned position, the lockbody 9 has the lower portion of its body seated on the floor of the coupler in position to bear against the shoulder portion 24, and the lug 28 is, as indicated more clearly in Fig. 8 of the drawings, engaged or embraced by the lateral hook extension 11 of said lock-body. The parts being in this position, it will be seen that the inward ly-extending arm 4 of the lock engages or is in position to bear against that side of the lock-bod y on which is formed said lateral hook extension 11. Through this engagement of the knuckle-arm and the lockbody and the engagement of the latter with the shoulder portion 24 of the d 'aw-head the knuckle is prevented from swinging outward to the unlocked position and is retained in the position indicated in Figs. 1 and 8 of the drawings.

The operation of throwing the knuckle to the open or unlocked position is substantially as follows: By a lever or other suitable means not herein shown the operating-pin 16 is lifted vertically. In the beginning ofthis movement the contact of the upper beveled end of the projecting lug or key 22 of said pin with the under side of the lock-body results in raising the latter until, through frictional contact. with the inclined projection 29 and a point 29 on the lock of the lug 28, in conjunction with the contact of the beveled end of the log 22 with the lock, said lock is turned slightly outward. This slight out-ward movement of the lock results in the key projection entering the lock-keyway 14, the look, however, being prevented from dropping by the movement of the upper hook portion 11 onto the ledge 27. It is obvious, however, that the above-described contact of the lug-incline and lock and the outward movement of the latter can only be attained'after the lock has been lifted vertically until its body portion is above the shoulder portion 24 and its hook portion 11 is above the lug 28. In order to permit of this first or preliminary lock movement without moving the knuckle outward, I have provided the knuckle-arm with the recess 7, into which the lock-finger 15 might move during the above-described operation. A continued upward movement of the pin 16 now causes an engagement of the threads 25 and 21, resulting in a rotation of said pin, and this pin rotation causing, through the engagement of the lug or key projection 22 of the pin with the keyway 14 of the look, a corresponding rotation of said lock. The lock rotation by contact of its finger 15 with the rear or inner side of the knuckle-arm causes an outward swinging movement of the latter and a consequent movement of said knuckle to an open position. In the swinging movement of the lock above described it is obvious that the upward hook portion 11 thereof will overlap and travel upon the ledge 27. The above operation being accomplished, it is obvious that the pin may be dropped to its normal position without interfence with the positions of the various parts heretofore described.

By the opening of the knuckle the mouth of the draw-head is in the usual manner sufficiently opened or widened to receive the knuckle of an adjoining draw-head, and the contact of the adjoining draw-head knuckle with the arm of the knuckle 3 results, as will readily be seen, in said knuckle 3 being again swung inward until its head is interlocked with the knuckle-head of the adjoining drawhead. In this inward or closing movement of the knuckle it is obvious that the contact of the knuckle-arm with the lock-finger 15 results in rotating said lock until its lock portion 11 is in position to drop downward and IIO again embrace the lug 28 and its body portion is again seated upon the floor of the coupler and in position forabutment against the shoulder 24.

It is evident that the closing operation of the knuckle described in the preceding paragraph would be defeated in case the lock should by any means be swung partially or wholly back to its locked position while the knuckle was open. In order to obviate this difiiculty, I have provided the knuckle with the tongue 5, the end of which when said knuckle is open extends within the path of the vertical portion of the lock and prevents any possibility of said lock swinging until the knuckle is moved inward.

It will be observed that the completion of the first lifting movement of the pin described, which causes the first slight rotation of the lock, the lock-finger 15 is raised and moved to a point beneath the hook projection 5 of the knuckle and above the rib or shoulder 7, so that in case the lifting movement of the pin is discontinued at this point the contact of said lock-finger with the upper side of said rib must result in supporting the lock in position for its last outward swinging movement when the kn uckle-head is subjected to an outward pull. In this manner it will readily be seen that the disengagement of the lock and knuckle may be efiected, so that when the adjoining car is pulled away from the draw-head described a complete disengagement of the couplers will be effected without further action on the part of the operator.

It is well known thata desirable and essential feature of couplers of the class herein described consists in so distributing the pulling strain of the knuckle as to prevent the same coming altogether on one point such, for instance, as the pin 2. By my construction it will be seen that when the parts are in their locked positions a broad bearingcontact of the knuckle-arm 4 and the lockbody is not only attained, but that the deep vertical shoulder portion 8 of said arm talso engages said lock-body and that the latter in turn is prevented from any possible swinging or outward movement by its engagement with the coupler-head shoulder 24. In this manner it will be seen that the lock is thus provided with both upper and lower stopbearings or contact-surfaces and that the pulling strain is so distributed as to obviate any tendency toward breaking, bending, or giving away of any of the parts of the device. It will also be seen that even though the hingepin 2 should become broken or displaced the coupling-heads would be securely retained in their coupled positions.

From the operation described it will be seen that the unlocking of the knuckle and setting of the lock are accomplished wholly by the lifting of a single pin and that the operation of the working parts of the coupler is simple and positive.

Having now fully described my invention,

what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a recessed drawhead and a knuckle fulcrnmed therein, of a pin capable of a vertical and rotary movement in said draw-head and a finger rotatably mounted on said pin and adapted by an upward movement of the latter to move the knuckle to an open position, substantially as specified.

2. In a car-coupling, the combination with a recessed draw-head and a fulcru med knuckle in one of the jaws thereof, said knuckle having an arm adapted to extend within the draw head recess,ofalock-operating pin,a kn ucklelock adapted to be lifted and swung by a vertical movement of said pin and capable of a swinging movement independent of said pin and adapted by engagement with said knuckle to move the lock to an open position, substantially as specified.

3. In a car-coupling, the combination with a recessed draw-head, a shoulder 24 in the lower portion thereof and a knuckle fulcrumed in one jaw of said head and having an arm 4,0f a pin 16 extending loosely through the draw-head and capable of both a vertical and rotal'ifllw ement, a knuckle-lock on said pincapable of being lifted by the latter or rotated thereon, said knuckle'lock adapted to engage said shoulder 24 and adapted to hold the knuckle-arm against outward movement and means whereby a lifting of the pin 16 operates to raise the lock out of engagement with said shoulder 24, swings said lock out of the path of the knuckle-arm and moves the latter outward, substantially as specified.

4. In acar-coupling, the combination with a recessed draw-head having a forward shoulder or stop-wall 24 in its lower portion and an internally-threaded pin-hole through its upper portion and an angular knuckle fulcrumed in one of the draw-head jaws of a lock-operating pin having a portion of its body threaded, a knuckle-lock adapted to be first lifted by'and then swung on said pin by an upward movement of the latter to unlock the said knuckle said lock being normally seated in the lower portion of the draw-head in rear of said shoulder 24:, substantially as specified.

5. In a car-coupling, the combination with a recessed draw-head and a fulcru med knuckle in one of the jaws thereof, said knuckle having an arm adapted to extend within the drawhead recess and a lateral projection 6 on said knuckle-arm, of a lock-operating pin, a kn uckle-lock mounted on said pin and adapted to be lifted and swung by a vertical movement of the latter, said lock having a finger 15 which is adapted by a preliminary vertical and swinging movement of the lock to be moved onto said knuckle-arm projection and by a continued swinging movement of the lock to move said knuckle-arm outward, substantially as specified.

6. In a car-coupling, the combination with a recessed draw-head and a fulcrumed knuckle a If in one of the jaws thereof, said liliiiclzle having an arm adapted to extend within the drawhead recess and said arm being provided with a lateral recess 7 on its inner portion, of a lock-operating pin, alock mounted on said pin.

andadapted to be lifted and swung by a vertical movement of therlattei'j'sai d lock having a finger 15 which is adapted by a preliminary vertical and swinging movement of the lock to be moved into said kn uckle-recess '7 with- A out contact with said knuckle, substantially as specified.

7. In a car-coupling, the combination with a-recessed draw-head having a lock-seat. in

its lower portion and a f0rwardly-projectiug ledge 27 and downwardly-extending lug 28 in its upper portion; said lug having an inclined side and a knuckle fulcrumed in one of the draw-head jaws and having an arm extending within the recessed head, of-a lock-operating pin, a lock mounted thereon and having a hooked or recessed portion 11 adapted to engage said lug 28, said lock adapted by its eleyation to be disengaged from said lug and to he swnugglightly by engagement with the inclined face of said lug, substantially as specified.

SAMUEL P. BUSH.

In presence of- C. O. SHEPHERD, A. L. PHELPS. 

